New Jersey schools spent an average of $18,891 to educate each student last year, an increase of $866, or almost 5 percent, from 2012, according to figures released yesterday by the New Jersey Department of Education, with costs varying widely among districts.

The annual "Taxpayer’s Guide to Education Spending" showed wealthy Avalon Borough in Cape May County at the top of the list of districts and charter schools, spending $43,775 a student. The lowest district, Rockaway Borough, spent $12,587.

Seven of the districts spent more than $30,000 a student, and 22 others spent more than $25,000. The county special education districts were not included in the information made available.

The annual report provided budget information for every school district and charter schools. The method of calculation was changed in 2011 to account for all education spending, including transportation, debt service, post-retirement medical costs and pension payments the state made on behalf of the district.

By comparison, the national average for each student was $12,743 in 2009-10, according to the National Center for Education Statistics. But that figure only included school operations, capital costs and school debt.

"This annual spending guide has been a valuable source of clear, useful, data on our schools for taxpayers across the state," acting Education Commissioner David Hespe said in a statement released with the report.

"This well-established guide includes a full accounting for all dollars spent on our schools providing a complete picture of spending in every school district in the state," he added.

Joining Rockaway Borough at the bottom of the list are Greenwich Township in Warren County ($13,645), Hammonton in Atlantic County ($13,836), Salem County Vocational ($14,017) and Fairview Borough in Bergen County ($14,030).

In the middle are a host of disparate districts, including East Hanover Township, a K-8 district that spent $18,877 per student;
Morris Plains, at $18,840; Montclair, at $18,805; and Ocean Township, at $18,798.

Robin Kulwin, president of the Montclair Board of Education, said the information warranted careful study.

"You have to look at it in its proper context," Kulwin said. "I think it’s incumbent on all of us not to just look at the surface. There’s a story behind all those numbers."

There are many factors that can push costs up. Districts with decreasing enrollments may have high per-pupil costs, as do those with a higher percentage of disabled students. Some districts offer busing, while others don’t provide any transportation. Those choices are reflected in the total costs.

The report provides spending costs in 17 categories, including salaries, textbooks, extracurricular activities, food service and legal services. It ranks districts in 14 of these categories.

In addition to financial information, the report detailed district enrollment, student-teacher ratio and faculty-staff ratio.